Tornados Fall To Lenoir-Rhyne 40-14 in SAC Opener

Brevard, N.C. – The Brevard College men’s football team opened up their 2008 South Atlantic Conference season on Saturday afternoon, as the Tornados fell to the Bears of Lenoir-Rhyne 40-14 at Brevard Memorial Stadium.

The loss drops the Tornados to 1-3 on the year and 0-1 in SAC play, while the Bears improve to 3-2 on the year and 1-0 in the SAC.

The Tornados got off to a very slow start in their first home afternoon contest on the year, as the Bears jumped out to an early 14-0 lead after the first quarter by way of two touchdown runs – one by quarterback Justin Sanders and the other by running back Joey Robinson.

The Bears scored again in the early minutes of the second quarter of play, as L-R kicker Colin Corpe booted a 32-yard field goal to put the visitors up big, 17-0 with 11:14 to go in the first half.

BC answered by way of the pass, as quarterback Kye Hamilton connected with freshman wide receiver Hasan Carriel for a 21-yard touchdown pass in the back right corner of the endzone to put BC on the board. The catch was Carriel’s first touchdown catch of his career at Brevard College.

After a Chase Henry extra point, the Tornados found themselves down ten at 17-7 with a little over 10 minutes to play in the opening half.

L-R’s offense answered as Sanders scored on a five-yard scurry to cap a 6-play, 20 yard drive, all set up by a 75-yard kick return by Barry Tate. The score put the Bears back up by 17 at 24-7.

Yet the BC duo of Hamilton and Carriel would hook up again only six minutes later, as Hamilton connected with Carriel, who was draped by an L-R defender, down the BC sideline for a 49-yard touchdown play with only 1:13 remaining in the half.

With the score at 24-14, L-R again answered with a score, as Corpe connected with his second field goal of the game, a 27-yard kick that sailed through the uprights and gave the Bears a 27-14 heading into the halftime break.

In the second half, the Bears controlled the game as the offense was on the field for close to 21 minutes of the final 30 minutes of play, keeping the Tornados offense off the field and wearing down an already injury depleted BC defense.

L-R’s Corpe had a field goal in the third, a 26-yard kick, which proved to be the only scoring in the quarter as neither team could find the endzone for the 15 minutes of play.

In the fourth, L-R’s Anthony Silvers scored on a one-yard touchdown run and Corpe kicked his fourth field goal of the game, a 36-yarder, to wrap up the scoring in the second half and give the Bears the 40-14 win over the Tornados.

Offensively, BC was held to only 188 yards for the game with 139 yards coming by way of the passing game. Hamilton was 8-of-16 for 121 yards with two touchdowns and one interception. Running back John Compton, who was the primary back due to the absence of injured John Taylor, recorded 23 yards on 11 carries. Backup quarterback Matthew Gaines had 22 rushing yards and 18 passing yards in limited action in the fourth quarter.

Junior receiver Donald Hudson had two catches for 34 yards, while Carriel had a career-day, gathering in three passes for 83 yards and two touchdowns in only his third career game at the college level.

L-R was led by Sanders, as the junior quarterback was 12-of-15 for 200 yards through the air and rushed for 53 yards and two touchdowns on the ground. Running back James Pone had 37 yards on nine carries, while Silvers and Robinson each had one touchdown for the game.

BC linebacker Stanley Jones was everywhere for the Tornados on the defensive side of the ball, as the junior had 21 total tackles on the game, seven solo and 14 assists. Fellow linebacker Brandon Rawls had 12 total tackles and one sack, while senior Justin Jefferson and junior John Hardee combined to have 13 total tackles and a sack on the day.

L-R’s defense played strong all day, holding the Tornados to only 49 rushing yards. Defensive lineman Nelson Bullard had one sack, while Tate had an interception, picking off a Hamilton pass. Linebackers Ranzell Watkins and Zac O’Brien led the way as Watkins had six total tackles and O’Brien had four.

The Tornados will continue their tough SAC slate next Saturday night, when BC will play host to the Wingate University Bulldogs at 6 p.m. at Brevard Memorial Stadium. Lenoir-Rhyne will play at home next Saturday, as the Bears will play host to the Pioneers of Tusculum College. That game is slated for a 2 p.m. kick-off.